From Ribchester to Rome!

Stonyhurst’s Schola Cantorum was honoured to open this year’s Ribchester Festival with their concert on Saturday 7th June at St Wilfrid’s Parish Church, directed by Dr Kevin Morgan. Schola sang pieces by Sir Edward Elgar – Doubt not thy Father’s care, The Snow and Give unto the Lord – as well as Evening Hymn by Balfour Gardiner. They also gave a wonderful performance of Mendelssohn’s Hear my prayer, with solos beautifully sung by Emma Leach and Martha Hindle, and Haydn’s The Heavens are telling, in which Schola’s departing Rhetoricians sang the solo parts of the angels Gabriel, Uriel and Raphael. Some excellent instrumental and vocal solos were also included in the programme: Matthias Turner played Fauré’s Elegie (cello), and Olivia Haworth played a piano piece by Einaudi; Anthony Chow played Take 5 by Brubeck on the saxophone and Noah Williams sang Vaughan Williams’ The Vagabond.

The concert was extremely well received by a very large audience, who then progressed to a delightful cheese and wine tasting event sponsored by Booths.

Schola has had an exceedingly busy term which is about to culminate in an exciting tour to Rome! They depart on June 24th and will give concerts in a number of historic churches, including the Gesù, the mother church of the Jesuits.